DOCSLIB.ORG

Kant and Kierkegaard: the Subjectivization of Faith

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Kant and Kierkegaard: the Subjectivization of Faith Animus 3 (1998) www.swgc.mun.ca/animus Kant And Kierkegaard: The Subjectivization Of Faith Antoinette M. Stafford [email protected] Introduction Writing in polemical opposition to Hegelian philosophy, 1 Soren Kierkegaard strenuously criticized the tendency of his age to elevate the results of objective reflection (scientific/historical research) and the categories of Absolute Idealism over the standpoint of the ethically-existing, finite individual. Evincing a deep distrust of the antinomous, self-transcending concepts of speculative reason, he insists that "a firmness with respect to logical distinctions" must constitute the foundation of genuine human reflection on such conceptual dualities as finite-infinite, temporal-eternal, human-divine. Underlying all theoretical enquiry, as its presupposition and condition of possibility, lies the concrete reality of the ethico-religiously "interested" individual, whose quest for the fulness of selfhood takes primacy over any possible objective knowledge. Only if this fundamental existential insight is acknowledged can metaphysical hubris be held in check and a place reserved for the proper apprehension of the ineluctable truth of finite human subjectivity. Scholarly opinion is divided on the degree to which Kierkegaard's critique of speculative thinking presupposes a Kantian view of reason. For one recent commentator, Anthony Rudd, Kierkegaard's disavowal of universal philosophical reason in favour of the primacy of finite ethico-religious subjectivity places him in an antithetical relation not only to Hegel but also to Kant's transcendental idealist ethics. 2 Any apparent similarity in 1 Kierkegaard's familiarity with Hegel's writings was largely indirect, mediated through the work of a Danish disciple, Hans Lassen Martensen, whose theological writings attempted to resolve the current impasse between Christian orthodoxy and Enlightenment rationalism through an apparently Hegelian speculative mediation between these mutually contradictory poles. Yet Danish Hegelianism was by no means a mere application of Hegelian principles to local concerns, and studying Martensen's theology therefore offered no adequate substitute for familiarity with Hegel's own texts. Robert L. Horn, in his dissertation, "Positivity and Dialectic: A Study of the Theological Method of Hans Lassen Martensen" ( Ph.D. dissertation, Union Theological Seminary, New York, 1969) argues strongly for the distinctness of Danish Hegelianism, as developed by Martensen. 2 Anthony Rudd , Kierkegaard and the Limits of the Ethical, Oxford, 1993. Rudd comments: "It is quite frequently claimed that Kierkegaard's ethics is largely Kantian, but this seems to me about as radical an error as it is possible to make in the interpretation of Kierkegaard. Nowhere does he say anything about morality being a condition of rationally consistent action; his mockery of the 'pure subject' and his insistence on the need for passionate existential choice are diametrically opposed to the Kantian idea that morality can be proved to be a condition of action for any rational agent."( 71) Rudd reminds us that, far from seeing ethical choice in the Kantian manner as a subordination of individual interests to the requirements of universal law or consistency in action, Kierkegaard understands "the STAFFORD: KANT AND KIERKEGAARD: THE SUBJECTIVIZATION OF FAITH their divergent views Rudd traces to Kant's roots in Protestant pietist Christianity, which make it "no surprise that Kant often sounds as much like a Christian moralist as Kierkegaard."[Ibid. 136] This veneer of Christian ethics notwithstanding, Kant's version of ethics, Rudd argues, "leaves out belief in God", since Kantian morality is based on the radical autonomy of the rational agent, while religious faith emerges solely as a logical consequence of moral self-consciousness. From Rudd's perspective, Kierkegaard's thought, by contrast, affirms the irreducible independence of faith -- particularly Christian faith -- as a standpoint in which the finite subject "leaps" beyond the limits of ethical striving to a paradoxical relationship with the divine. Yet questions must be raised concerning the adequacy of this assessment. For although in Kant the movement from morality to faith is mediated by the demand for rational coherence, while in Kierkegaard the transition occurs via an unmediated leap, for both thinkers genuine religious consciousness presupposes a richly articulated ethical life and can arise only in response to the needs of the ethical agent. Those needs differ markedly -- for Kant, the moral life collapses into a rationally incoherent "absurdum practicum" when stripped of the practical/rational postulates of God and immortality, while for Kierkegaard, the ethical subject's need for God flows from the experienced impossibility of existential self-synthesis in the absence of divine intervention. In each case, however, the standpoint of the autonomous ethical subject is presupposed, the categories of faith functioning as vehicles for the completion of that subject's extra- religious goals. Despite the clear and proper distinction Rudd draws between Kant's rational transcendental idealism and Kierkegaard's anti-idealist Christian existentialism, I would argue that particularly in Kant's later thought, Christian categories figure largely in his efforts fully to characterize the structure of autonomous moral subjectivity, while Kierkegaard's version of Christian faith owes much of its character to a reliance on Kant's dualist epistemology. Another recent commentator, Ronald Green, admits a Kant/Kierkegaard link based on the shared principle of the "primacy of practical reason".3 He argues, however, that Kant's Enlightenment confidence in free, universal thought/action is supplanted in Kierkegaard by a vigorous defence of traditional Christianity. Green looks to Kant's concept of radical evil, developed in Religion Within the Bounds of Reason Alone, to support the claim that " ...Kant's powerful series of arguments in the Religion furnished Kierkegaard with much of the intellectual ammunition he needed for his project of defending Christian orthodoxy."4 universal disciplines" of ethics and religious faith primarily as means to achieving the goal of individual self-realization ( 135). In light of these existential preoccupations it would be perverse in Rudd's view to link Kierkegaard in any but the most superficial way to Kantian thought. 3 Ronald Green, Kierkegaard and Kant: the Hidden Debt,, Albany, New York, 1992. 4 Green, 175. Kant's chief deviation from Christian orthodoxy lies, for Green, in his insistence that man must be able to effect his own moral regeneration. Kant's Enlightenment principles cannot accommodate admission of the powerlessness of the moral individual before sin -- whereas Kierkegaard's orthodoxy lies in his assertion that the problem of sin constitutes an absolute barrier between man and God, such that no "immanent" solution to our moral failure is possible. I would argue that Kierkegaard's appeal to the historical Christ as mediator between sinful man and the divine is, however, no return to an orthodox 146 STAFFORD: KANT AND KIERKEGAARD: THE SUBJECTIVIZATION OF FAITH My intention here is to consider Kant's and Kierkegaard's understanding of religious faith and its relationship to moral life. In Sections A and B, I argue that Kant's Enlightenment confidence in the autonomy of the rational moral subject does ultimately require him to subordinate religious faith to the demands of ethical autonomy, and in particular to reduce central doctrines of the Christian religion to means for resolving certain contradictions which inevitably arise within moral experience as manifest in the context of his transcendental dualism. Then in C, I argue that despite contemporary appeals to Kierkegaard as defender of authentic Christianity against the encroachments of Enlightenment humanism, shared epistemological assumptions ensure that the existential subject's paradoxical Christian faith offers no genuine alternative, but rather is an extension of Kant's demythologized version of orthodox Christian principles. A. Kant's Practical Faith i) The Moral Grounds of Belief in God In Kant's concept of moral faith we see the emergence of a significant new strategy for justifying and comprehending religious experience. Traditionally, the Christian believer aspired to know the divine, both through conforming his consciousness to the revealed doctrines of the church, and through rational theological argument offering insight into God's being and nature. With the rise of Enlightenment methods of critical enquiry, however, the validity of both religious dogmas and rational theological doctrines was called into question. Empirical scientists joined forces with historical/biblical scholars to trace the natural roots of religious creeds, while appeals to absolute religious truths met with deepening scepticism, as rational understanding pursued its negative, critical deconstruction of both positive revelation and abstract, metaphysical claims to know God. Enlightenment thought challenged theological orthodoxy at every point, until in Kant's time there yawned a wide, antagonistic gulf between the claims of a free rational thought and those of a defensive, beleaguered religious faith. Kant regarded the rescue of religious faith from the sceptical encroachments of Enlightenment as one of the chief accomplishments of his transcendental critique of pure reason. By bifurcating reality into a phenomenal and
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Kant's Theoretical Conception Of
    KANT’S THEORETICAL CONCEPTION OF GOD Yaron Noam Hoffer Submitted to the faculty of the University Graduate School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Philosophy, September 2017 Accepted by the Graduate Faculty, Indiana University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Doctoral Committee _________________________________________ Allen W. Wood, Ph.D. (Chair) _________________________________________ Sandra L. Shapshay, Ph.D. _________________________________________ Timothy O'Connor, Ph.D. _________________________________________ Michel Chaouli, Ph.D 15 September, 2017 ii Copyright © 2017 Yaron Noam Hoffer iii To Mor, who let me make her ends mine and made my ends hers iv Acknowledgments God has never been an important part of my life, growing up in a secular environment. Ironically, only through Kant, the ‘all-destroyer’ of rational theology and champion of enlightenment, I developed an interest in God. I was drawn to Kant’s philosophy since the beginning of my undergraduate studies, thinking that he got something right in many topics, or at least introduced fruitful ways of dealing with them. Early in my Graduate studies I was struck by Kant’s moral argument justifying belief in God’s existence. While I can’t say I was convinced, it somehow resonated with my cautious but inextricable optimism. My appreciation for this argument led me to have a closer look at Kant’s discussion of rational theology and especially his pre-critical writings. From there it was a short step to rediscover early modern metaphysics in general and embark upon the current project. This journey could not have been completed without the intellectual, emotional, and material support I was very fortunate to receive from my teachers, colleagues, friends, and family.
    [Show full text]
  • Spiritual Ecology: on the Way to Ecological Existentialism
    religions Article Spiritual Ecology: On the Way to Ecological Existentialism Sam Mickey Theology and Religious Studies, University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94117, USA; [email protected] Received: 17 September 2020; Accepted: 29 October 2020; Published: 4 November 2020 Abstract: Spiritual ecology is closely related to inquiries into religion and ecology, religion and nature, and religious environmentalism. This article presents considerations of the unique possibilities afforded by the idea of spiritual ecology. On one hand, these possibilities include problematic tendencies in some strands of contemporary spirituality, including anti-intellectualism, a lack of sociopolitical engagement, and complicity in a sense of happiness that is captured by capitalist enclosures and consumerist desires. On the other hand, spiritual ecology promises to involve an existential commitment to solidarity with nonhumans, and it gestures toward ways of knowing and interacting that are more inclusive than what is typically conveyed by the term “religion.” Much work on spiritual ecology is broadly pluralistic, leaving open the question of how to discern the difference between better and worse forms of spiritual ecology. This article affirms that pluralism while also distinguishing between the anti-intellectual, individualistic, and capitalistic possibilities of spiritual ecology from varieties of spiritual ecology that are on the way to what can be described as ecological existentialism or coexistentialism. Keywords: spirituality; existentialism; ecology; animism; pluralism; knowledge 1. Introduction Spiritual ecology, broadly conceived, refers to ways that individuals and communities orient their thinking, feeling, and acting in response to the intersection of religions and spiritualities with ecology, nature, and environmentalism. There are other ways of referring to this topic.
    [Show full text]
  • The Existentialism of Martin Buber and Implications for Education
    This dissertation has been microfilmed exactly as received 69-4919 KINER, Edward David, 1939- THE EXISTENTIALISM OF MARTIN BUBER AND IMPLICATIONS FOR EDUCATION. The Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1968 Education, general University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan THE EXISTENTIALISM OF MARTIN BUBER AND IMPLICATIONS FOR EDUCATION DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Edward David Kiner, B.A., M.A. ####*### The Ohio State University 1968 Approved by Adviser College of Education This thesis is dedicated to significant others, to warm, vital, concerned people Who have meant much to me and have helped me achieve my self, To people whose lives and beings have manifested "glimpses" of the Eternal Thou, To my wife, Sharyn, and my children, Seth and Debra. VITA February 14* 1939 Born - Cleveland, Ohio 1961......... B.A. Western Reserve University April, 1965..... M.A. Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion June, 1965...... Ordained a Rabbi 1965-1968........ Assistant Rabbi, Temple Israel, Columbus, Ohio 1967-1968...... Director of Religious Education, Columbus, Ohio FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Philosophy of Education Studies in Philosophy of Education, Dr. Everett J. Kircher Studies in Curriculum, Dr. Alexander Frazier Studies in Philosophy, Dr. Marvin Fox ill TABLE OF CONTENTS Page DEDICATION............................................. ii VITA ................................................... iii INTRODUCTION............................ 1 Chapter I. AN INTRODUCTION TO MARTIN BUBER'S THOUGHT....... 6 Philosophical Anthropology I And Thou Martin Buber and Hasidism Buber and Existentialism Conclusion II. EPISTEMOLOGY . 30 Truth Past and Present I-It Knowledge Thinking Philosophy I-Thou Knowledge Complemented by I-It Living Truth Buber as an Ebdstentialist-Intuitionist Implications for Education A Major Problem Education, Inclusion, and the Problem of Criterion Conclusion III.
    [Show full text]
  • HEIDEGGER's TRANSCENDENTALISM Author(S): DANIEL DAHLSTROM Source: Research in Phenomenology, Vol
    HEIDEGGER'S TRANSCENDENTALISM Author(s): DANIEL DAHLSTROM Source: Research in Phenomenology, Vol. 35 (2005), pp. 29-54 Published by: Brill Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/24721815 Accessed: 23-01-2018 19:34 UTC JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://about.jstor.org/terms Brill is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Research in Phenomenology This content downloaded from 142.58.129.109 on Tue, 23 Jan 2018 19:34:17 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms HEIDEGGER S TRANSCENDENTALISM by DANIEL DAHLSTROM Boston University Abstract This paper attempts to marshall some of the evidence of the transcendental character of Heidegger's later thinking, despite his repudiation of any form of transcendental think ing, including that of his own earlier project of fundamental ontology. The transcen dental significance of that early project is first outlined through comparison and contrast with the diverse transcendental turns in the philosophies of Kant and Husserl. The paper then turns to Heidegger's account of the historical source of the notion of tran scendence in Plato's thinking, its legacy in various forms of transcendental philosophy, and his reasons for attempting to think in a post-transcendental way.
    [Show full text]
  • Five Times Daily
    Five Times Daily: The Dynamics of Prayer Worship Among Muslim Immigrants in St. John's, NL By Scott Royle A thesis submitted to the Department of Religious Studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland in partial fulfillment for the degree of Masters of Arts in Religious Studies March 2016 Abstract This thesis explores the ritual of prayer among Muslim immigrants in the city of St. John's, NL. Immigration across national, cultural, religious, and ethnic borders is a moment in an individual's life marked by significant change. My premise is that in such contexts the relatively conservative nature of religious ritual can supply much-needed continuity, comfort, and consolation for individuals living- through the immigrant experience. As well, ritual forms are often put under stress when transferred to a considerably different place and cultural context, where “facts on the ground” may be obstacles to traditional and familiar ritual forms. Changes to the understanding or practice of ritual are common in new cultural and geographic situations, and ritual itself often becomes not merely a means of social identification and cohesion, but a practical tool in processing change - in the context of immigration, in learning to live in a new community. St. John's is a lively and historic city and while Muslim immigrants may be a small group within it they nevertheless contribute to the city's energy and atmosphere. This thesis endeavours to better understand the life stories of ten of these newcomers to St. John's, focusing on their religious backgrounds and lives. In particular, this thesis seeks to better understand the place of prayer in the immigrant experience.
    [Show full text]
  • The Authenticity of Ambiguity: Dada and Existentialism
    THE AUTHENTICITY OF AMBIGUITY: DADA AND EXISTENTIALISM by ELIZABETH FRANCES BENJAMIN A thesis submitted to The University of Birmingham For the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Modern Languages College of Arts and Law University of Birmingham August 2014 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. ii - ABSTRACT - Dada is often dismissed as an anti-art movement that engaged with a limited and merely destructive theoretical impetus. French Existentialism is often condemned for its perceived quietist implications. However, closer analysis reveals a preoccupation with philosophy in the former and with art in the latter. Neither was nonsensical or meaningless, but both reveal a rich individualist ethics aimed at the amelioration of the individual and society. It is through their combined analysis that we can view and productively utilise their alignment. Offering new critical aesthetic and philosophical approaches to Dada as a quintessential part of the European Avant-Garde, this thesis performs a reassessment of the movement as a form of (proto-)Existentialist philosophy. The thesis represents the first major comparative study of Dada and Existentialism, contributing a new perspective on Dada as a movement, a historical legacy, and a philosophical field of study.
    [Show full text]
  • Brains, Beliefs, and Existentialism: Philosophies and Treatments Pertaining to Three Approaches to Social Anxiety Disorder
    Running head: BRAINS, BELIEFS, AND EXISTENTIALISM Brains, Beliefs, and Existentialism: Philosophies and Treatments Pertaining to Three Approaches to Social Anxiety Disorder, and the Prospect of a New Mental Health Paradigm Jason Campbell Advised by Michael J. Crowley, Ph.D. Yale University April 20, 2018 BRAINS, BELIEFS, AND EXISTENTIALISM 1 Introduction This paper provides a brief overview of social anxiety disorder, and outlines three approaches discernible in the scientific literature to understanding the etiology and maintenance of social anxiety disorder. The connection of each of these approaches to a certain type of treatment is discussed, as well the philosophical assumptions supporting each of these approaches. These three approaches are then comparatively assessed in terms of their suitability for explaining the etiology and maintenance of social anxiety disorder, with an emphasis on the relationship between dynamics at distinct levels of abstraction. The shortcomings of the current DSM paradigm of mental illness are explored, and how improvements thereof may be related to the development of a more robust understanding of the mechanisms of mindfulness-based interventions. This paper concludes with a brief discussion of the potential value of existential philosophy in grounding and guiding the project of developing a new conceptual framework for mental health and illness that is less susceptible to the criticisms of the current DSM framework, and which can satisfyingly account for the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions for a wide range of psychiatric disorders. Social anxiety disorder Social anxiety disorder (SAD), alternatively referred to as social phobia, is an anxiety disorder that pertains specifically to social situations. SAD affects approximately seven percent of Americans annually (American Psychiatric Association, 2013), and has a lifetime prevalence of approximately twelve percent (Kessler et al., 2005).
    [Show full text]
  • August 8, 2019 – the Invitation Topic: 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting for the Uofn Join Ywamers Around the Globe in Praying
    August 8, 2019 – The Invitation Topic: 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting for the UofN Join YWAMers around the globe in praying and hearing from God. He is inviting you! From left to right: YWAM Lausanne; University of the Nations graduation. Photo credits: YWAM Lausanne, Emily Ranquist This year, YWAM is celebrating 50 years of training. It all began with a small group of young adults studying evangelism in Lausanne, Switzerland. This year YWAM has set aside time to remember, to pray, and to look to the future of YWAM’s training, which has now grown into a global university called the University of the Nations. Please join us on August 8, for YWAM’s global prayer day, called The Invitation, as we pray for YWAM’s training. This day is also the kickoff for 21 days of prayer and fasting for the University of the Nations from August 8 – August 28. This will be a time as a family of ministries where we seek God together, wait on Him and pray what He has shown us. We believe the Lord is leading us in a time of transition and a time of going deeper in Him for His purposes for the U of N. We believe your prayer will provide a protection and preparation for the Holy Spirit to lead us afresh into this phase of growth and multiplication. Please find the simple prayer guide to help give daily prayer focus at this link: (http://hwcdn.libsyn.com/p/0/c/4/0c41bad60d287fca/21_Days_of_Prayer_and_Fasting_2019.pdf?c_i d=47740064&cs_id=47740064&expiration=1563889257&hwt=8207060723128ac0fe396e85a5edaaa 4) We encourage your family, ministries and teams to enter into this time, to give up some type of normal indulgence such as food or media and to seek God together.
    [Show full text]
  • A Critique of Religion As Politics in the Public Sphere
    DigitalCommons@NYLS Articles & Chapters Faculty Scholarship 1993 A Critique of Religion as Politics in the Public Sphere Ruti Teitel New York Law School Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.nyls.edu/fac_articles_chapters Part of the Constitutional Law Commons, and the Religion Law Commons Recommended Citation 78 Cornell L. Rev. 747 (1992-1993) This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at DigitalCommons@NYLS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Articles & Chapters by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@NYLS. A CRITIQUE OF RELIGION AS POLITICS IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE Ruti Teitel t TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction . 7 48 I. THE CALL FROM POLITICS •••.••.•••••••••••..••••••••• 750 A. Epistemology and Lawmaking ...................... 750 B. Of Beliefs and Conversation . 752 C. Of Fragmentation and Consensus . 754 II. THE CALL FROM RELIGION •.••.•••••••.•••.•••••••••••• 756 A. The Original Separation Model . 7 56 B. Three Antinomies of Separation . 759 C. The New Engagement . 760 D. The Retreat from the Original Model . 762 E. Of Fragmentation and Consensus . 763 III. RELIGION, POLITICS, AND CONSTITUTIONAL LAW • • . • . • • • 766 A. The Original Neutrality Principle . 766 B. The New Neutrality: Religion as Politics ........... 768 1. In Legislative Decisionmaking . 768 2. In Individual Decisionmaking and Free Exercise Clause Doctrine......................................... 773 3. Employment Division v. Smith and Religion as Politics.......................................... 774 C. Religion as Politics and the Analogy to Political Speech ............................................ 777 IV. THE DISCOURSE MODEL • . • • . • • • . • • . • • . • • . • • . • • • • • • . 780 A. The Call to Conversation . 780 B. The Commitment to Conversation . 781 C. The Commitment to Equality of Access . 782 D. Of Duty and of Civility . 783 t Associate Professor of Law, New York Law School.
    [Show full text]
  • N.I.Il`Minskii and the Christianization of the Chuvash
    Durham E-Theses Narodnost` and Obshchechelovechnost` in 19th century Russian missionary work: N.I.Il`minskii and the Christianization of the Chuvash KOLOSOVA, ALISON,RUTH How to cite: KOLOSOVA, ALISON,RUTH (2016) Narodnost` and Obshchechelovechnost` in 19th century Russian missionary work: N.I.Il`minskii and the Christianization of the Chuvash, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/11403/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 1 Narodnost` and Obshchechelovechnost` in 19th century Russian missionary work: N.I.Il`minskii and the Christianization of the Chuvash PhD Thesis submitted by Alison Ruth Kolosova Material Abstract Nikolai Il`minskii, a specialist in Arabic and the Turkic languages which he taught at the Kazan Theological Academy and Kazan University from the 1840s to 1860s, became in 1872 the Director of the Kazan Teachers‟ Seminary where the first teachers were trained for native- language schools among the Turkic and Finnic peoples of the Volga-Urals and Siberia.
    [Show full text]
  • Spiritualism and Possession
    Moshe Sluhovsky. Believe Not Every Spirit: Possession, Mysticism, and Discernment in Early Modern Catholicism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007. 384 pp. $45.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-226-76282-1. Reviewed by Marc R. Forster (Department of History, Connecticut College) Published on H-HRE (February, 2008) Spiritualism and Possession Moshe Sluhovsky has wrien an excellent study of ese forms of “passive interiority” were however possession and mysticism in early modern European not just for women and were widely practiced among Catholicism. His elegantly wrien and clearly argued Catholics, including, for example, the Jesuits. However, book, Believe Not Every Spirit, points scholars in some the official church also always considered them suspect. new directions in understanding the meaning of demonic Sluhovsky explains in detail the theological debates that possession. Most importantly, Sluhovsky links cases of aempted to draw lines between acceptable and unac- demonic possession to spiritual developments in Catholi- ceptable (possibly heretical) forms of mysticism. He cism, developments that caused considerable tension and points out, in addition, that mystical practices were in- even confusion for church leaders, while opening both creasingly considered feminine. French mystics of this opportunities and dangers for individual believers, espe- type were sometimes called femmelees, people who cially women, who were inclined toward mystical and lacked the reason and control for proper piety. More sig- interiorized spirituality. nificant for the argument of this book, Sluhovsky empha- Sluhovsky presents a clear narrative of the history of sizes that both practitioners and church leaders consid- diabolic possession. is story is perhaps not surpris- ered the practices of passive interior mysticism fraught ing and mirrors in many ways developments in witch with the danger of diabolical possession.
    [Show full text]
  • Ministering to the Mourning.3Rd Pf 3/1/06 8:46 AM Page 7
    Ministering to the Mourning.3rd pf 3/1/06 8:46 AM Page 7 Contents Preface 9 Foreword 11 1. Death and Contemporary American Culture 13 2. Death in the Old Testament 23 3. Death in the New Testament 37 4. Death and the Physician 55 5. Death and the Christian Caregiver 65 6. Death and the Funeral Director 79 7. Death and the Family: The Pastoral Opportunity 89 8. Death and the Final Good-Bye 107 9. Challenging Situations 129 10. Questions Pastors and Mourners Ask 155 11. An Anthology of Resources 177 Appendix—Ideas for Funeral Messages 191 Bibliography 203 Scripture Index 225 About the Authors 237 Ministering to the Mourning.3rd pf 3/1/06 8:39 AM Page 13 ONE Death and Contemporary American Culture It’s becoming more and more difficult to minister to grieving people, because in their attempts to enjoy life, many of them are denying death. Mention death and the average person responds something like comedian Woody Allen: “It’s not that I’m afraid to die. I just don’t want to be there when it happens.” There are no funeral homes in shopping malls to remind us of our mortality; and if there were, the salespeople would have to hand out free coffee to keep shoppers from looking the other way. With one hand gripping the steering wheel and the other holding a cell phone, most people breeze their way through the day and never consider that it might be their last. Ours is a culture that insists that we remain young, no matter how old we are.
    [Show full text]